On the 15th of June 2024 the whole community was shocked by the sudden unexpected passing of a great friend to many, Kristian Smith aka “Long dog”.

I knew Kristian on a personal level as a great friend off the field.

I met him first when I was involved with the Pontypool RFC development team as forwards coach ,and Kristian was one of our up and coming young forwards. Kristian was an outstanding young player who was always working hard to improve his game.

On Monday September 9th, myself and three rugby friends (Mike Whitson, Adrian Varney and Bill Jackson) will be flying out to the west of Spain where we will be undertaking a 100 mile walk along the Camino de Santiago.

This is a walk that goes from Ferrol to Santiago de Compostella over 5 days.

I will be undertaking this walk in memory of Kristian to raise funds to support his family following their tragic loss.

Any donations would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Nigel x